U.N weapons embargo on Iran lifts after 13 years

A 13-year-old United Nations embargo on Iran that blocked the nation from buying and selling weapons expired on Sunday, despite U.S. protests, The Associated Press reports. Iran's foreign affairs minister, Javad Zarif, called the occasion a "momentous day for the international community … in defiance of the U.S. regime's effort."

The U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency claimed last year that if the embargo was allowed to expire, as was in keeping with the five-year timetable described by the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, then Iran would potentially attempt to purchase fighter jets, anti-aircraft missiles, and tanks from Russia, or other arms from China. Iran has insisted it has no plans for a "buying spree," and some experts say the country is "more likely to purchase small numbers of advanced weapons systems," The Guardian reports.

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